23 October 2010

I am the worst traveler ever

I've been spoiled rotten by the many business trips to Japan, which are the only times I've wandered out of the country prior to this. All I ever really have to is literally show up at the airport.

So today was a bit, umm, frenetic to say the least. When I woke up I had no money in US dollars (actually, I had no cash, period), no idea how to get to our hotel (no idea what it's called even), and to top it all off, I have not started packing. Long story short, at 4 in the afternoon I was doing a mad dash in Gateway to buy 1) US Dollars 2) contact lens solution and 3) a travel toothbrush. I boarded a cab 30 minutes later and the driver was telling me it's impossible to make it to the airport in time for my 7:30 flight. But we obviously did, with time to spare, but not without beating a couple of red lights and other such traffic violations.

And then, I completely forgot about that other tax you have to pay for, and I don't really have a habit of carrying a lot of pesos in my wallet, even when travelling, so long story short after all the taxes and fees and things I am left with zilch pesos. As in I didn't even have enough money to get myself a can of overpriced coke.

In the plane I found myself sandwiched between an OFW who was leaving the country for the first time and promptly started crying the moment the plane took off and a kuya with long hair, nose and ear piercings, and inked arms who drank three full glasses of red wine in flight and clapped his hands when the plane landed. And behind me was this kid who kept crying and kicking my seat. So yeah.

Oh, and I apologize for calling the JAL food meh. Because the food that PAL serves is, for lack of a better term, disgusting. Even the food I cook tastes better than that, and it is not swimming in oil. And I find the flight attendants a bit... abrasive, but I do think it's because I have gotten so used to the very mild-mannered JAL flight attendants. See? Spoiled rotten.

But the landing was pretty good, though. My mom says PAL has good pilots, so maybe she's right. So yeah, I've landed. In Bangkok. The whole airport thing was a breeze, and the taxi driver did not ask for additional tip. Yay me. ^^

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I am the worst traveler ever

I've been spoiled rotten by the many business trips to Japan, which are the only times I've wandered out of the country prior to this. All I ever really have to is literally show up at the airport.

So today was a bit, umm, frenetic to say the least. When I woke up I had no money in US dollars (actually, I had no cash, period), no idea how to get to our hotel (no idea what it's called even), and to top it all off, I have not started packing. Long story short, at 4 in the afternoon I was doing a mad dash in Gateway to buy 1) US Dollars 2) contact lens solution and 3) a travel toothbrush. I boarded a cab 30 minutes later and the driver was telling me it's impossible to make it to the airport in time for my 7:30 flight. But we obviously did, with time to spare, but not without beating a couple of red lights and other such traffic violations.

And then, I completely forgot about that other tax you have to pay for, and I don't really have a habit of carrying a lot of pesos in my wallet, even when travelling, so long story short after all the taxes and fees and things I am left with zilch pesos. As in I didn't even have enough money to get myself a can of overpriced coke.

In the plane I found myself sandwiched between an OFW who was leaving the country for the first time and promptly started crying the moment the plane took off and a kuya with long hair, nose and ear piercings, and inked arms who drank three full glasses of red wine in flight and clapped his hands when the plane landed. And behind me was this kid who kept crying and kicking my seat. So yeah.

Oh, and I apologize for calling the JAL food meh. Because the food that PAL serves is, for lack of a better term, disgusting. Even the food I cook tastes better than that, and it is not swimming in oil. And I find the flight attendants a bit... abrasive, but I do think it's because I have gotten so used to the very mild-mannered JAL flight attendants. See? Spoiled rotten.

But the landing was pretty good, though. My mom says PAL has good pilots, so maybe she's right. So yeah, I've landed. In Bangkok. The whole airport thing was a breeze, and the taxi driver did not ask for additional tip. Yay me. ^^